Ren, can you please share your Marcus Moment with us? ❤️❤️
This. This look. Right here.
Look at this body language. This is really the first time you get a glance at a different Marcus than we have seen up until this point. This is when Patrick Jane has caught Marcus leaving Teresa a note, and Marcus just gives him this look. The evaluating gaze, the clenched jaw, the way he draws himself up...this is assertive, challenging. This is an alpha male sizing up a competitor and thinking, "Hmph, really?"
And it made me go, "Oh, Marcus, nice to meet you finally."
Up until now, we had just seen Marcus in one mode, which typically involves him going out of his way to make others comfortable, even if that means suppressing his own needs. He even tries that here with Jane:
He makes a really solid attempt at his charming, everything-is-great smile, but he just can't sustain it. And honestly, it breaks my heart that he tries. Patrick Jane waited until Teresa was on a plane to Marcus and Marcus's fiance before he decided to tell her that he loved her. That means Marcus found out about all this in a phone call while alone in DC.
And we see how much this situation has hurt him when his face slips, and he says, "So...you and her."
But then he does this. He steps forward into Patrick's space, full height, and he asks him, "So do you have a plan?"
This is the real Marcus in one line.
First, he's asking this because, despite everything, he is still looking out for Teresa. This woman shattered his heart, and he is essentially giving the talk to her new guy, who just offered him the whole, "Sorry, we never intended to hurt you" bullshit. The protective instincts of this man are just...off the charts.
THEN Marcus says, "Well I was offering her a life, a home, a family if she wanted it."
Again, it's all about Teresa. I was offering her these things if she wanted them. What he wanted never even comes into it, and make no mistake, that this is a man who wants and needs a home and a family. This is a man who plans. Everything. And he just cannot figure out why he can't get this right.
Second, notice that even as he makes an aggressive movement forward towards Jane, he defensively crosses his arms. And that is because he has another reason for asking this question that is deeply personal. Marcus wants to know where he fell short. "What are you offering her besides Patrick Jane?"
What didn't I offer her that I could have?
Because he tried everything. Every time he sensed Teresa waver he tried even harder to reassure her that he was there for her.
I'm going to DC but I will give it up for you. You don't want me to do that but you don't want me to go? Okay, how about you come with me?
You want time to think about it? No pressure.
You need a job? Let me call in some favors.
I took you to something I'm interested in and you fell asleep? No problem.
You are having feelings for someone else? You want to talk about it? Just let me know when you make a decision.
You have to work? Okay, I'll bring you food. I'll wait for you in the lobby. You didn't even bother to tell me that you weren't going to make it? That's alright. Hey, have you tried this with your case?
You're coming but you still seem nervous about it? What if we got married? Would that show you that I'm here for you?
And again, it never even enters his mind that maybe she was unworthy of him. All he's thinking is I fell short somewhere, and I want to know how so I can fix it in the future. This man...
Oof, and then he sees her. The naked emotion on this man's face. It just about kills me. The sadness, the desire. This could've been an opportunity for him to get some closure. Instead, he basically tells her he forgives her and tries to make her feel better.
"It was good to see you, Teresa."
Again, this woman was not good to him, but he still comes to see her when he's in town. He still wants to check on her to see if she's doing okay. He even manages to give Jane one last look of, "You better treat her right" before he leaves.
Caring, assertive, protective, selfless. That's Marcus Pike.
All of that to say, this is the scene that my Marcus is born from. This is my moment, and RYLAB is me trying to give him happiness. Because damn does he deserve it.
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